Anne Rice says Paula Deen is being 'crucified'

Author Anne Rice defended Paula Deen on her Facebook page.

Matthias Scheer

Matthias Scheer

Patrick Kevin Day

Anne Rice, the author of "Interview With the Vampire" and two books about the life of Jesus Christ, had never heard of celebrity chef Paula Deen until last Friday, but she believes the TV personality is being "crucified."

Rice wrote a brief defense of Deen on her Facebook page on Friday, then engaged in further discussion with her fans, many of whom wrote to express their dismay that Rice would defend the chef.

Deen has been embroiled in a scandal stemming from a court deposition in which she admitted to having a history of using racial epithets. Despite a public apology, Deen has lost her contract with Food Network and a prominent sponsor, and her relationship with QVC is currently being "reviewed" by the shopping channel.

"I never heard of her until today, and wow, this looks like a crucifixion," Rice wrote. "I may be wrong but aren't we becoming something of a lynch mob culture?"

When an African American educator from the South wrote to share her disappointment that Rice would be a defender of Deen, the author didn't back down.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you but I think she's being crucified," she wrote. "The lawsuit is ugly all right, and the brother of Paula Dean comes off as a detestable person. But I don't think Paula Deen should go down over this. I think it's unfair."

She goes on to write, "In more forgiving times, we didn't ask our crude, vulgar self made achievers to be perfect, or politically correct or to have a faultless cultural or religious pedigree. But times have changed."

Though Deen's public image has been taking a beating, she hasn't been totally without her defenders. Besides Rice, Glenn Beck has also come to her defense.